The White Flight From Football

[BmoreGorilla]

African-American kids should play soccer (football).

I agree. Our kids would beast in that sport. The problem is that there’s not a lot of examples of AAs excelling in that sport that would influence kids to wanna play. And it’s not like it’s the most popular sport in America to begin with. Soccer desperately needs a mainstream AA superstar

 

[Phitz]

Of course but that’s a low yield wager.......

not really, there's more than just Div I schools. If hthey're only focused on Education there's tons of opportunities and schools.

 

[BmoreGorilla]

If its a good article why are you copy pasting the whole thing dog? Let em get some clicks. Brehs will take over college baseball and lacrosse if we shifted focus



She doesnt even have a GED herself? What could she help him with it.

It’s crazy how we used to dominate baseball. I think part of the reason it’s not as popular with our kids anymore is that it’s not as popular as it used to be in general. I think I’m part of that last generation that cared about baseball. The best players in the game were black. Barry Bonds, Ken Griffey Jr., Albert Bell. Now the best black players speak Spanish

 

[The ADD]

not really, there's more than just Div I schools. If hthey're only focused on Education there's tons of opportunities and schools.

There are but that assumes that there isn’t competition for those scholarships as well. Of course the better the player the more opportunity but every single kid on a team isn’t getting a scholarship. Some just aren’t scholarship level regardless.

 

[Easy-E]

Football’s War on the Minds of Black Men

With nearly 1,200 of the NFL's 1,700 players being black, football's concussion problem is also clearly a racial problem.

For decades, young black men have laid themselves on the line for a game which has given most of them very little back in exchange. They have risked their bodies and minds to make millions for universities, and were compensated only with scholarships and the slim chance of an NFL contract. So how and why have families been tricked into sending so many young boys off to play this dangerous game? Black lives must matter on the field, as well as on the streets.

According to a study from last year, NFL players develop dementia and Alzheimer's at a rate more than five times that of average Americans...In other words, many professional football players–almost 70 percent of whom are black–are literally killing their brains.

 

[Eddy Gordo]

I don't doubt that sports teaches you important life lessons. But are we really going to argue that football teaches you lessons that no other sport could teach? What good is everything you're learning when you're damaging your developing brain? I'm sure there are other lessons they could be learning that would help them like how to study so they can succeed academically.

Finally, there are studies to support the conclusions drawn in the article but anyone with even a cursory knowledge of human development understands that it's not a good idea for children to be consistently knocked in the head.

We don't encourage black boys to excel academically in the first place so that's a non starter.

No other sport teaches you about pain quite like football. The ability to have some fukking grit and push through pain is a skill a lot of young men lack.

And lastly the studies presented present no conclusive cause. Correlation doesn't equal causation. They merely assume a link between behavioral changes and peewee football. But everyone knows a lot of kids change up during middle school and puberty.

Not to mention the fact that other contact sports experience just as many if not more concussions on average than football in a season. Or that we haven't looked at the number of college athletes who develop CTE. Not to even mention high school where MOST people's football careers end.

 

[reasonable_doubter]

I bet the majority of black nfl players are from the south... breh, im in texas... football is huge... no way to get around it.... its a culture..... doesnt really matter about income class either; if the cowboys or texans are making a championship run, look who is in the stands and steakhouses......

 

[Anerdyblackguy]

This divergence paints a troubling picture of how economic opportunity—or a lack thereof—governs which boys are incentivized to put their body and brain at risk to play. Depending on where families live, and what other options are available to them, they see either a game that is too violent to consider or one that is necessary and important, if risky. Millions of Americans still watch football; NFL ratings were up this season. That a distinct portion of families won’t let their children play creates a disturbing future for the country’s most popular game.

This whole quote is so sad. They really have no choice but to play football.

 

[reasonable_doubter]

fukk you tryna say bro?

like it or not, but the black american community doesnt value their boys.....

 

[Phitz]

There are but that assumes that there isn’t competition for those scholarships as well. Of course the better the player the more opportunity but every single kid on a team isn’t getting a scholarship. Some just aren’t scholarship level regardless.

Yes but NOT ALL are playing for scholarship so it evens out.

 

[The ADD]

Yes but NOT ALL are playing for scholarship so it evens out.

I don’t think saying it evens out is accurate.

Again IF the wager is solely to bank on a scholarship then it’s not the most high value wager.

 

[Phitz]

I don’t think saying it evens out is accurate.

Again IF the wager is solely to bank on a scholarship then it’s not the most high value wager.

....as opposed to?

No sport is a high value wager

Alot of smart kids still have to take out loans

The small academic scholarships help but again high value as opposed to?

That depends.. with all the small schools and junior colleges with sports programs, there's a decent shot. I'm not talking decent shot at NFL. I'm talking decent shot at FREE education.

 

[I Really Mean It]

I’m very confused. Not that it’s easy but why not put your focus and energy on the kids education?

Because playing for the NFL pays more than a 9-5.

 

[☑︎#VoteDemocrat]

African-American kids should play soccer (football).

What what ATLANTA UNITED did...once that culture touches it...

 

[Chrishaune]

That dude got let go at the most known high school in Alabama "Hoover High" because of stuff going on with him. Think he had a family on the side and everything. He went on to find a job in Georgia though.